Secretary of State Corporation Division 255 Capitol St. NE, Suite 151 Salem OR 97310 sos.oregon.gov/notary

Contact: corporation.division@oregon.gov

Notary News

As the COVID-19 crisis continues to impact notaries in Oregon, the Secretary of State has compiled a list of best practices to help Notaries carry out their duties.

Best Practices:

• Wash hands before and after notarizing. If possible, keep hand sanitizer available at all times.
• Don’t reuse pens that are being used for signing. Either give a pen to the client or ask them to bring their own. Another option is to sanitize the pen after each use.
• Protect the paper surface of your journal by using laminated paper or plastic sheets. Place one above and one below the signature line so that the only area that is exposed is the section that needs to be signed. Sanitize the laminated paper before and after each use.
• Consider keeping a plastic or glass shield between notary and customer (this may mean that one party stays in the car).
• Consider meeting clients in an outdoor area instead of in closed offices. 
• Consider traveling with a small card table so documents can be signed on a flat surface. Sanitize after set up and then again after use.
• Wear a facial covering, use gloves, and ask clients to do the same.
• Be sure to maintain social distancing.
• Provided that the client appears in person before the notary, and both parties can see each other throughout the notarization, a phone may be used to facilitate communication.

The Notary and signer must be able to communicate with each other by sight and sound through the window or by normal means. FaceTime, Skype or other electronic communication tools must not be used to complete a notarization. 

NOT Allowed Under Oregon Law:

• Notaries may not drop packages off for a client to sign out of sight of the notary.
• Video or teleconferencing applications such as FaceTime or Skype may NOT be used to satisfy the legal requirement for personal appearance before a notary.
• Remote Online Notarization (RON) is not currently allowed under Oregon Law.

Your health and safety, and that of the signer, is the top priority of the Secretary of State, and each notarization will need to be evaluated and handled on a case-by-case basis.

• Decline to notarize if you feel the environment would put you at risk in any way.
• If you are sick, decline to notarize.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

Please email us at corporation.division@oregon.gov if you have questions.